Kipchaks

The Kipchaks were a Turkic people that originated in the Kimek Khanate of Central Asia, later becoming the progenitors of modern Kazakhs. From the 1000s to 1100s, the Kipchaks conquered much of the steppes of Central Asia, and they formed a confederation with the Cumans while fighting against the Kievan Rus, Pechenegs, Hungary, and the Byzantine Empire. In 1203, the Kipchaks sacked Kiev, but in 1241 the Mongol Empire conquered the Kipchaks. The "Kipchak Khanate" (Golden Horde) was formed by the Mongols to rule over Russia and Central Asia, and many Kipchaks were enslaved and sold to foreign dynasties. The Bahri Mamluks were mostly Cumans and Kipchaks, with Sultan as-Salih Ayyub purchasing unusually large numbers of enslaved Kipchaks to fill the ranks of his army. Some even served in the army of the Yuan dynasty, becoming known as "Kharchins". The Kipchaks were almost all Sunni Muslims, with a few being Shi'ite or Tengri.